to begin with my very many congrats to the congress led upa. this win has given us a hope like none other at a time when every election pundit was predicting a hung verdict where the cpm's, sp's, bsp's would have run the roast and what a sigh of relief when all these parties will have to sit in the opposition. i always looked at a govt which would either have congress or bjp at the helm and in complete control and concentrate on the problems faced by the country than have a government where they keep obliging and facilitating other coalition partners and their interests, something that has happened repeatedly since 1995 and since we have had a lost era the worst of which was seen in the last five years.

with great trust comes great responsibility and all this gets associated with hope and a hope for a better future. we have entered the 21st century and still we have few of the highest number of malnutritioned children and people, still a lot of people go to sleep with out any facilities of shelter or without any food, still majority of us do not have proper sanitation facility, still majority of us have no access to basic health care facilities and this has continued to happen even after the various tall claims that all our political outfits keep making. trust can be won and it takes a long time to build but that can be shattered in no time if those expectations are not met and one hopes we do not enter an era where the vast majority of people feel disillusioned. the present government will do good to appreciate the fact that even today the vast majority of people in our country lives in villages, and it is these people who have to feel that the state is with them and is looking after them because every thing said and done, these are the people who turn out and vote for them in large numbers.

my other concern is education, no doubt we have done well in the past two decades on this front but a lot more needs to be done and we need to have generations henceforth which see at least a minimum of 10-12 years of formal education starting from class one. great nations are built by great minds and if the generations to come are well educated one can be more or less assured that the nation will have a great future. the government has delivered well on the primary education, but now the focus has to be on secondary, higher secondary and technical education. we need a huge set of people who have technical training if we are to nurture our dream of being a manufacturing hub that was once spoken of by mr manmohan singh. time a big chunk of budget allocation goes towards setting up more iti and other technical institutes namely engineering, IT, BT, iisc, etc. the doors of higher education have to be opened to foreign universities who can come and open shop in the country, high time we did it or as has happened in the past we will keep loosing great minds and good amount of foreign exchange to off shore locations that take away some very bright minds.

with education, employment generation has a direct correlation or people educated but sitting idle are of no use to the country, on the contrary they become a liability on the nation. one would like to see a spirit of entrepreneurship be instilled in the young minds of our nation, india should be known as a nation of entrepreneurs, as it is we are well known to have produced few of the finest managers who have run some very successful businesses all over the world for others. we need to enter an era where indian owned companies based out of india make the maximum number of slots in the top 1000 companies in all the categories. if we can do this we can be rest assured all our employment needs will be well taken care off and india and indians would rule the world as a soft power by taking over various businesses all around the world and not only give employment opportunities to indians in india but to all nationalities across the globe.

agriculture sector has to be prioritised and for this there has to be a sound irrigation policy and the much debated topic of joining the rivers of the country has to be implemented in a time bound manner or else we will keep struggling to achieve the much desired 4% growth rate in the sector and there will be no end to the rather notorious farmer suicides. the hydel electricity projects have to implemented which work two way, one use is of course electricity generation but the other is that it increases the water storage capacity of the country which will further boost the irrigation policy. i specifically take this point because i do not want the government to dole out more loan waivers, on the contrary would like to see the same money be used in creation of facilities that do not force us to see the repetition of circumstances under which such dole outs happen. most of the talk of second generation reforms in the agri sector has its roots to the irrigation and if we can take care of this then half of our problems are sorted out.

the continuation of the reform process has been well spoken of by various experts and it is high time to give a big push now so that when the globe finds its way out of the recession then they find india as one of the best destinations to make their investments at and dont head else where which has happened in the past. this is the time for the so-called second generation of reforms. single window clearance has to be made a norm and not a one off case to please a few. infrastructure has been one of our biggest weaknesses. government needs to heavily incentivise this sector because we will surely attract some good investments even in these trying times and also this is one sector where break even takes the most time.

a country can not progress till the time it is secured both internally and externally. we have played the victim card once too many times and it is high time that we ourselves take responsibility for incidents like numerous bomb blasts, kargil episode, parliament attack, plane hijack, 26/11, etc rather than finger pointing and then go in a deep slumber till the time such an incident happens yet again. no economic progress and activity can be talked of till this very basic is looked into and worked upon in detail. with this we have a huge challenge by the name of maoists which has to be given national importance and not be left as a state law and order issue. just because this has not effected the urban elite does not mean we sleep over this issue.

these are just a few of my concerns and with this i wish the next government of india all the best and hope that do not get too stuck with the sexiness of achieving 10% growth rate figure but bring about a plan which sees a wholesome growth of the nation where no one feels left out. with this i hope the govt comes out with laurels that we would all be proud of and not regret it as another case of a lost era.

I would like to add infrastructure to this. Roads and Power are the key to further develop our economy. If India has to realize a close to 10% growth, infrastructure has to be the best. The government did well in the previous term to get the nuclear agreement through. Now it has to materialize it in terms of projects on ground and quick implementation from foundation to actual generation.

That aside, other sources of energy too need to be looked at, mainly renewable sources like hydel, solar.
As pointed out already, hydel power generation has other benefits too. Namely irrigation and flood control.

Also the inter linking of rivers should be given an active consideration as it will help resolve both flood and drought situation facing the different parts of the country.

India has for long being sucked into service oriented country. The new government has to take big measures to promote manufacturing so that our industries are competitive in the international market. India has to look into taking a bit of the Chinese pie in the manufacturing sector. It will add quite a few percentage to our GDP.

The new government MAY seek but what's the guarantee that private sector will oblige? They didn't last time, most refused. This time around it will be no different. If congress tries forcing them, they are most likely going to just play the system like they always have.

On the side note, Congress was elected cause of progress India is making, not because of Quota system. But considering how retarded an average politician is, who is surprised that they think it's the quotas that got them the votes? But then again, Congress has been doing this crap for ages, so I don't think it's anything new..

If they are going to seek reservations in private sector then its the appeasing policies that irritates every body and I for one dont support this kind of policies. Let them give financial support to the families who are in need of it from school to colleges or take care of their fess etc and give industry the good candidates instead of reserving seats for them. This will still alienate people of country among caste and such lines. What about the guys who are poor and cant avail reservation but have good marks, it will be like a double whip on them.

The new government MAY seek but what's the guarantee that private sector will oblige? They didn't last time, most refused. This time around it will be no different. If congress tries forcing them, they are most likely going to just play the system like they always have.

On the side note, Congress was elected cause of progress India is making, not because of Quota system. But considering how retarded an average politician is, who is surprised that they think it's the quotas that got them the votes? But then again, Congress has been doing this crap for ages, so I don't think it's anything new..

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This time its new because they want to step into the private sector. Well i believe instead of giving good governance and handling other issues at hand they will be stuck up on issues like this and I wonder how many days the Parliament will work this time with opposition walking out on petty issues.

Improved delivery of government services, through the web where possible

Build a social security net for the poor, may be Naidu's idea of cash transfers in some way for the poorest, make the politicians/bureaucrats accountable for measurable improvement in the poorest areas

Create a CDS post, professionalize the procurement process and remove all delays

A holistic defense strategy and stress on indigenous defense production, 70% in 5 years and 90% in 10 years

Major anti-corruption drive, get the money from Tax heavens

Accountability for the bureaucrats and conversely freedom and growth for the capable ones

On Sunday, television viewers witnessed the denouement of the media's noisy and often distorted coverage of the elections to the 15th Lok Sabha. Just an hour or so after counting began, it became clear the Congress was on its way to a renewed and enhanced mandate. Some saw this coming; indeed, it was there for all to see. The election had taken place under the most extraordinary circumstances: an acute global financial crisis and the aftermath of terror attacks in Mumbai late last year. It was fairly obvious that voters would plump for stability by providing a decisive verdict as they had in 1977 and 1984.

Like the one in 2009, those two elections were held at a time India felt its future was at stake. In 1977, voters decisively rejected Indira Gandhi after she suspended the Constitution, jailed political opponents and muzzled the press during her two-year Emergency. Seven years later, after she fell victim to the bullets of her Sikh bodyguards, the electorate gave her son Rajiv the biggest-ever mandate. These two extraordinary outcomes were useful in predicting the result of the most recent parliamentary election.

One of the most stirring moments in the post-result euphoria was when Prime Minister Manmohan Singh told reporters assembled at 10 Janpath, Sonia Gandhi's residence, "I urge all the political parties to forget their past disputes...We should stand one as a nation." The comment is important because it represents the return of civility in pairs. Unlike the triumphal note the BJP, the Left and various regional formations customarily sound on their various victories, Singh's sober tone signalled his intention to steer a conciliatory course in his next term. Under the new dispensation, public discourse would move beyond matters of probity to decency in public life. This is a major step in the evolution of the political system.

Sadly though, various self-important Congress factotums hit the high registers of arrogance in their dealings with former allies like Lalu Prasad and Mulayam Singh Yadav and with current supporters like the DMK.

This acrimonious beginning raises troubling questions about the future. The vindictive elements need to be reined in swiftly. Unchecked, their arrogance could undermine the new credibility the Grand Old Party has won. If the Congress is to implement what P Chidambaram called its "crisp" manifesto, it will need broad support from the non-Left, non-BJP members of Parliament.

So what's on tap? Take monetary policy. With the resurgence of investor confidence, the Reserve Bank is likely to cut interest rates to facilitate the flow of credit into the domestic economy. In the event, it must also provide incentives to banks to lend to businesses, especially cash-starved small and medium enterprises.

Concerning fiscal policy, huge investments are needed in surface and mass transport, civil aviation, sanitation, water supply, power generation and what have you. One obvious way to raise funds is to sell public sector assets. The railways, ports trusts and various other agencies own vast tracts of prized real estate that could fetch princely sums. The telecom department is widely known to have the biggest network of auto repair shops in India. The tourism ministry's crumbling hotels are obvious targets of divestment as are government-run airlines.

Hobbled by the Left and its fellow travellers in the Congress and its allies, the government hedged its bets on attracting foreign investment. Complex bureaucratic hurdles made FDI dwindle in sector after sector. In retail, insurance, pensions, civil aviation, you name it, opening up remained at best an unfulfilled promise. Ominously, the commerce ministry's Kamal Nath breezily told a television channel, "We already have a liberalised (FDI) regime." He followed that up with a clear no on retail sector reform.

On higher education, despite the National Knowledge Commission's recommendations, policy remained confused and corrupt, dominated by a venal bureaucracy (the All India Council on Technical Education comes to mind) and obtuse politicians. The sluggish human resources development ministry, by its acts of omission and commission, spawned the paradox of growing unemployment despite a huge demand for qualified personnel.

With trade, India adopted the spoiler's role at World Trade Organisation conferences, playing the victim of rapacious developed countries. The rhetoric employed was from another era, when India played a prominent role in the Group of 77, the commercial foil of the Non-aligned Movement. Without the Left calling the shots, its acolytes in the Congress-led ruling coalition will find themselves adrift. It is likely that India will pursue a more reasonable line.

On foreign policy, the strategic alliance with the US, embodied in the nuclear deal, achieved a long-standing objective: to overturn the discriminatory non-proliferation regime. In the neighbourhood, South Block welcomed US pressure on Pakistan seeking to curb its military's anti-India fixation and focus attention on domestic problems caused by a resurgent Taliban. In Sri Lanka, India supported Colombo's final assault on the LTTE ridding the region of a major terrorist force. In Bangladesh and Nepal, the approach has been somewhat mixed, lacking strategic focus.

Despite the show of hubris by vindictive apparatchiks in the Congress and nagging doubts about its leftist bloc, the overall message is that the election results are a game changer.